Therianthropes

Overview
Official Name: Therianthropes Common name: Therians (Shapeshifters) Pronun.: theh-ree-uhns
Geography
Homeland:	The Fae Forest
Capital:	Rowan Caverns
Statistics
Currency:	Xanthai (ζ)
Calendar:	Xanth's Arrival (XT)
Languages:	Elysian, English, Sylvan
Population:	920,850 (mainland) 186,881 (Dardanos)
Physical
Lifespan:	80 years
Average Height:	5'10" / 1.78m (male) 5'8" / 1.73m (female)
Politics
Sentinel:	Drystan Black
Enemy:	Vampire
Ally:	Nymph
Patron:	Chenoan Cirocco
Skills & Powers
Skills:	Combat Divine Shield Form Morph
Weaknesses:	Metabolism

In 8,510 XA (510 AD), the first Hind appeared. This ominous monster was created by a fledgling Vampire named Conor Flynn who, like many Vampires, was turned against his will at the age of 26 in a small town in Ireland.

On the night of Conor's turning, he was chased from his home when he tried to attack another villager. He took shelter in a cave not too far from his town, where he happened upon a wolf giving birth to a litter of pups. Lost in a ravenous bloodlust, Conor attacked the helpless wolf.

The wolf had no chance to fight back and within moments she was at the brink of death. As the fury of the bloodlust drained from his body, Conor was immediately overcome by grief and shame. He attempted the same thing that his own killer had done, cutting his wrist with his new fangs and feeding the blood into the wolf's mouth in an effort to save her.

The effort did revive her, but not as Conor had intended. Like him, the wolf was overcome by bloodlust and immediately turned on him, feeding even as she continued to give birth.

Conor was not enough to quench her thirst and overpowering hunger. Leaving her newborn pups to fend for themselves, she moved out of the cave and set about devouring anything in her path, terrorising neighbouring villages for months before she was finally destroyed.

Her pups, raised by one of the villagers who had stumbled across their cave while searching for Conor, grew up to display intelligence and traits never before seen in wolves. It was not for several generations, however, that Conor's true legacy became known as the Vampires' Bloodlust virus spread throughout the animal kingdom, causing mutation after mutation.

All across the continent, animals were developing human intelligence and the ability to change their form. Driven out by prejudice and fear, these 'shapeshifters' segregated themselves from human civilisation, choosing to live free in the forests of Elysia.

To this day, many shapeshifters cling to their rural lifestyles, segregated from other Elysian races even though many of the prejudices of old have faded into memory. Many still live in the wild, alone or in small clusters, though some do choose to live in urban areas as humans.

Therian Government

The sheer variety of animals available to choose from means there's very little chance of any two Therians being the same. It's probably this level of choice and individuality that makes the species so unstructured, and Therians are certainly left to their own devices as long as they aren't breaking any city laws, but that doesn't mean they're completely without order.

Overall, Therians are led by the Sentinel (currently Drystan Black) who governs the species with a light hand from his offices at the heart of the Rowan Caverns. This man (or woman, though the majority of Sentinels in recent years have been male) literally wins the title by pitting himself against other Therians in the challenge arena and proving himself the stronger.

When Therians cluster together in the wild, they usually develop a hierarchy and look to the strongest member of their group for leadership. This person may not be physically stronger: Having human intelligence often negates the need for brute strength in favour of reasoning and logic, but leaders are usually physically capable nevertheless.

Living in civilised areas such as towns or cities usually forces the Therian to adhere to the rules and laws of that town, so a 'Shifter living among the other races is much less free than those living in the wild.

Despite having a loose government, the Sentinel has very little to do in terms of leadership and mostly acts as town mayor for the Caverns. All Therians are bound to recognise him as their leader, but most will never see him or be affected by his decisions and will instead defer to their own group leader or the laws of whatever town they call home.

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Skills & Powers

For an alphabetical list of powers for all species, check the Skills & Powers page here. You can also find out more information about the upgrade and level system there.

Combat

Combat and strategy.

Available to:

• Aide (max for one weapon in addition to their own allotment)
• Anyeli Warrior (max for up to three weapons)
• Dracovari (max for one weapon, or 3 upgrades across two weapons. Requires a level of Hoard for every level of Combat so, for instance, if you want Combat at Level Three, you must have Hoard 3 first, in order to maintain the level of concentration you need)
• Rutilus Dracovari (max for up to four weapons, or 12 upgrades across 5 weapons. Requires a level of Hoard for every level of Combat)
• Human (max for one weapon, or 3 upgrades across two weapons)
• Therian (max for one weapon, or 3 upgrades across two weapons)
• Vampire (max for up to two weapons)
• Zanaryan (max for up to two weapons)

You must purchase a separate series of upgrades for each category of weapon that you want to wield (so if you want to wield both a sword and a crossbow at an advanced level (Level Three), you'll need to purchase six separate upgrades (Basic, Intermediate and Advanced for two separate categories). Martial Arts are considered a category of their own, so you'd also need two separate combat skill systems to use Karate and Jiu-Jitsu.

Armour is also considered part of the level system, as fighting while wearing heavy protection requires a great deal of strength and stamina. Light armour might include leather gauntlets or a vest while heavy armour could be full-scale plate armour and a tall shield.

Level One

• Has basic skill.
• Can fight in light armour.
• Has basic skill while airborne (requires Flight 3).

Level Two

• Has intermediate skill.
• Can fight in light armour.
• Can fight in medium armour (requires Might 1).
• Has basic skill while airborne (requires Flight 3).
• Has intermediate skill while airborne (requires Flight 4).

Level Three

• Has advanced skill.
• Can fight in light armour.
• Can fight in medium armour (no extra requirements).
• Can fight in heavy armour (requires Might 2).
• Has basic skill while airborne (requires Flight 3).
• Has intermediate skill while airborne (requires Flight 4).
• Has advanced skill while airborne (requires Flight 5).

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Divine Shield

Summon a protective bubble by praying to Xanth. Each Shield lasts 5 minutes (10 minutes for humans and Aides) and costs 10 Karma Points (5KP for humans and free for Aides).

Available to:

• Aide (max. Up to Level Three is free)
• Anyeli (max)
• Dracovari (max)
• Human (max)
• Therian (max)
• Vampire (max)
• Zanaryan (max)

To activate this shield, PM Xanth (include a link to the thread in which you want protection). She'll post IC to describe the shield's activation, then again when the protective bubble collapses. You may not godmod this shield.

Level One

• Can deflect up to 10% of physical attacks.

Level Two

• Can deflect up to 20% of physical attacks.
• Can absorb up to 20% of elemental attacks.

Level Three

• Can deflect up to 40% of physical attacks.
• Can absorb up to 40% of elemental attacks.

Level Four

• Can deflect up to 60% of physical attacks.
• Can absorb up to 60% of elemental attacks.

Level Five

• Can deflect up to 80% of physical attacks.
• Can absorb up to 80% of elemental attacks.

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Form

This is the list of animal forms you can morph into.

Available to:

• Therian (max. Requires Morph 1)

Choose one form per level, up to a total of five. Remember to submit a description for every form you gain.

Level One

• Can choose a small domesticated form.

Level Two

• Can choose a small to medium domesticated form, or;
• Can choose a small predatory form.

Level Three

• Can choose a small to large domesticated form, or;
• Can choose a small to medium predatory form.

Level Four

• Can choose a small to large domesticated form, or;
• Can choose a small to large predatory form.

Level Five

• Can choose a small to large domesticated form, or;
• Can choose a small to large predatory form.

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Morph

This is the level of control you can exert while shapeshifting.

Available to:

• Therian (max. Requires a level of Metabolism for every level of Morph so, for instance, if you want Morph at Level Three, you must have Metabolism 3 first)

While in animal form, you gain the senses and instincts of that form. If you morph only body parts (partial 'shifting), you will gain that part's abilities (for instance, a wolf's hearing if you have wolf ears) for as long as you keep that body part.

You will revert to your human form if injured or sick, or if you fall asleep. Extreme emotion can also cause this to happen.

Only organic clothing morphs with you; everything else will fall off during the morphing process.

Level One

• Morphing process is painful.
• Takes more than 2 minutes to complete.
• Can stay in animal form for up to 1 hour at a time.
• Can morph 3 times a day.
• Will revert to human if tired.

Level Two

• Morphing process is uncomfortable.
• Takes more than 1 minute to complete.
• Can stay in animal form for up to 1 hour at a time.
• Can morph 3 times a day.
• Will revert to human if exhausted.

Level Three

• Morphing process is uncomfortable.
• Takes more than 1 minute to complete.
• Can stay in animal form for up to 2 hours at a time.
• Can morph 5 times a day.
• Will revert to human if exhausted.

Level Four

• Morphing process takes more than 30 seconds to complete.
• Can stay in animal form for up to 3 hours at a time.
• Can morph 5 times a day.
• Will only revert to human if exhausted.
• Can morph single body parts (eg. your nose).

Level Five

• Morphing process is almost instantaneous.
• Can stay in animal form for up to 3 hours at a time.
• Can morph 5 times a day.
• Will only revert to human if exhausted.
• Can morph multiple body parts (eg. your ears).

Level Six

• Morphing process is almost instantaneous.
• Can stay in animal form for up to 3 hours at a time.
• Can morph 5 times a day.
• Will only revert to human if exhausted.
• Can morph multiple body parts (eg. your ears).
• Can morph from animal to animal without reverting to human.

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Weaknesses

Metabolism

Therians are almost constantly hungry and must keep up their energy, as it takes a lot to shapeshift. The amount of morphing you can do per day, the control you have over your shapeshifting, and the length of time you can stay in your animal form all depend on you meeting this intake of calories.

A weakness of:

• Therian (max)

Level One

• Must eat between 4,000 and 4,500 calories per day.

Level Two

• Must eat between 3,500 and 4,000 calories per day.

Level Three

• Must eat between 3,000 and 3,500 calories per day.

Level Four

• Must eat between 2,500 and 3,000 calories per day.

Level Five

• Must eat between 2,000 and 2,500 calories per day.

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